Bio-Rad also came in with a good quarter:
>>HERCULES, Calif., July 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc. (AMEX: BIO.A - news, BIO.B - news) announced strong second quarter earnings today. Following record first quarter sales, the company reported revenues of $195.4 million, an increase of five percent compared to $186.8 million for the second quarter of 2000. Net income for the quarter increased to $11.6 million, or $0.94 per share, a 128 percent change compared to $5.1 million, $0.42 per share, in the second quarter of last year.
Highlights:
-- Estimated EBITDA for the quarter increased substantially to
$36.7 million from last year's $26.3 million.
-- Life Science sales reached $88.3 million for the quarter.
-- Clinical Diagnostics sales were $102.3 million in the second quarter.
-- Debt to Equity was reduced to 0.8x, down from 0.9x at the end of
December 2000.
-- Exclusive of currency effects and divested businesses, sales grew at
21 percent.
``We are very pleased to report that our sales have continued on an upward swing during the second quarter,'' said Bio-Rad President David Schwartz, ``and the segments we address in both life science and diagnostics continue to be buoyant.''
In the Life Science segment there is increasing demand for Bio-Rad's proteomics products, like the ProteomeWorks(TM) and the Bio-Plex(TM) systems. Used together, they provide laboratories with a fully integrated system for both protein discovery and monitoring -- two vital processes in the complex science of identifying protein markers for disease and developing effective drug treatments. With these products, the company has successfully capitalized on its expertise in protein separation technology, providing biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies with more advanced tools for drug discovery.
Bio-Rad's products used for DNA amplification also sold well in the second quarter. The company's iCycler iQ(TM) instrument, for example, has been well received among laboratories conducting research in genetic and disease analysis. The system is popular because of its superior multiplexing capabilities (the ability to scrutinize multiple samples simultaneously), excellent accuracy and speed, and because it is flexible enough to accommodate many different chemistries.
Bio-Rad's BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) test also remains in demand. In fact, it is now used by the majority of laboratories conducting mad cow screening in Europe. An estimated 1.4 million BSE tests were conducted throughout the Continent during the second quarter, and this number will likely increase as all E.U. nations initiate systematic screening programs to test cows over the age of 30 months. Data recently provided by the French Directorate General for Food (DGAL)(1) indicates that the Bio-Rad test has detected an average of one positive case out of 12,000, compared with other companies' tests that have detected one out of 38,000. The test is the fastest, most reliable screening device on the market, and is sensitive enough to detect the disease before cattle begin to show any outward symptoms.
Bio-Rad's Clinical Diagnostics business achieved worldwide sales in excess of $205 million during the first half of the year. While this is $2.2 million below last year's sales, the company's core diagnostics businesses actually grew at a rate of seven percent after normalizing sales figures for divestitures and discontinued products associated with the Pasteur Sanofi Diagnostics acquisition. This compares favorably with an overall industry growth rate of three to five percent. Within this segment, the company continues to experience gains in the sales of its hereditary hemochromatosis products and quality control technologies.<<
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>>HERCULES, Calif., July 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Join Tom Chesterman, Vice President and CFO, to discuss Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc., second quarter financial results on Thursday, July 26, 2001, 7:30 a.m. Pacific time.
Please mark your calendar
for the conference call on
Thursday, July 26, 2001 7:30 a.m. Pacific.
The number to join the call is 800-946-0782
Please call RCG Capital Markets Group at
480-675-0400 to guarantee a line on the call.
Or, listen via the Internet at
vcall.com
Replay of the call is available by visiting www.rcgonline.com , calling
719-457-0820, confirmation # 556011 or Vcall's Web site.<<
snip
Will somebody clone me so I can cover all this stuff?
Cheers, Tuck |
